Andy Svoboda, the new head professional at Butler National in Oak Brook, has made a big impression since arriving on the Chicago golf scene in March, and this week he could make an even bigger one. Svoboda is one of two Illinois PGA members to qualify for the PGA Championship, which tees off Thursday…
Author: lenz
Gotterup is an appropriate first champion at Myrtle Beach
MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. – This was only fitting. The newest tournament on the PGA Tour was won by one of the circuit’s youngest players. Chris Gotterup, just 24 and barely a year removed from his last college tournament, captured the inaugural Myrtle Beach Classic at the Dunes Golf & Beach Club. He took a four-stroke…
One tournament begins, another ends on PGA Tour this week
OCALA, FL. – Even without a ball being hit yet, the week ahead looms as an interesting one on the PGA Tour. Holding two concurrent events in the same week isn’t unusual on the PGA Tour, but this is a little different. The Wells Fargo Championship, in Charlotte, N.C., and the Myrtle Beach Classic are…
Three golfers with Chicago ties await the PGA Championship
Next week’s PGA Championship is the second of golf’s four major tournaments of 2024, and it’ll be extremely significant from a Chicago perspective. Two present Chicago area club professionals – Andy Svoboda of Butler National and Jeff Kellen of North Shore – earned spots in the field by finishing in the top 20 at…
NU golfers show Illini aren’t invincible in the Big Ten
Illinois’ record eight-year run as the Big Ten champion in men’s golf is over. Northwestern, led by medalist Daniel Svard, was a winner by 15 strokes at Ohio’s Scioto Country Club on Sunday with the Illini second. Both schools will get their regional assignments in the NCAA tournament today on The Golf Channel’s Selection Show….
Australia tourney gives the LIV Tour a big boost
OCALA, FL. – No, I wasn’t at LIV GOLF/Adelaide. Last week’s tournament was played in Australia. This was also one of the few LIV events that I didn’t watch on television. Still, from all I can gather, it provided an opportunity for the fledgling circuit to celebrate. Australia Golf Digest reported a crowd of…
At 66 Langer is making a comeback from Achilles surgery
OCALA, FL. – Yes, I know that there has been some monumental golf news the last few weeks – Nelly Korda winning five LPGA tournaments in a row and Scottie Scheffler getting four wins and a runner-up finish in his last five starts, and both winning major titles during those hot streaks. Those are…
Arthur Hills influence perks up golf options in Daytona
DAYTONA BEACH, FL. – Because we do what we do, it’s golf that is our first target when we make our visits to the Daytona Beach area, and that’s a shame. Daytona offers so much more than golf. There’s the beach, of course – 11 miles of oceanfront famous for its wide, firm sands that…
Illinois PGA adds team golf to its tournament schedule
The Illinois PGA informally opened its tournament season this week, but it won’t be long until the section’s newest feature in the schedule kicks in. Team play will make its debut on May 13 at the first stroke play event at Schaumburg Golf Club. This is real team play, not best ball or foursome…
LIV players made only a so-so showing at the 88th Masters
OCALA, Florida – The 87th Masters in 2023 was a big boost for the LIV Golf League. This year’s 88th, not so much. It’s inevitable, given the ongoing rivalry between LIV and the PGA Tour, that there are player comparisons any time both circuits have players in the same tournament. A year ago, in…